Ghost
Inkling
I wouldn't hesitate to use a race or critter mentioned in D&D because those guys borrowed from everything. I do get why you wouldn't want to use certain beings. I wouldn't use orcs, hobbits, gelatinous cubes, gnomes, the jabberwocky, Mecha-Streisand, etc. I prefer using things that have multiple sources or things people believe(d) in. If I can't find that, I take the time to create something to suit my needs.
That said, people enjoy these races. Many fantasy readers grew up on orcs, elves, and dwarves. To some readers, the Tolkien-derivative novels might as well be lifted from the vaults of ancient mythology because it's seeped into their consciousness. Also, when an artist works on a standard concept, she's participating in a wider phenomenon. It's sort of like a passing of the torch between predecessors who originate or popularize the idea and successors use the idea in new contexts. (I love folk music, so I understand wanting to continue the succession.) Sure, beings like vampires, ghosts, and gods have been around much longer than orcs and are more widespread, but orcs are still part of the canon. And the point about orcs fulfilling a niche previously taken by other baddies (ogres, trolls, goblins, etc) is right on, although I think orcs are slightly more sophisticated to suit the times since they tend to have a society of sorts.
I don't see anything wrong with the desire to participate in the dialog between past and present, but writers need to be respectful of the source. What bothers me is throwing standard races into a novel because that's what makes fantasy. No other reason. It just seems "fantasy." It happens in other genres. It has lasers, so now it's science fiction. Grr!
If you orcs entertain you and you want to tell an entertaining story, orcs will do. Odds are it won't really be your story if you rely on someone else's definition of "orc" instead of doing the work to make it your own.
The idea of orcs entering the tradition is interesting. It gets tricky when things are in transition because it's not clear cut. We'll understand it better in a few decades, and by then we'll be arguing about why Klingons or Dementors–or whatever else takes authors' fancies–are unoriginal or lazy. I look forward to it.
That said, people enjoy these races. Many fantasy readers grew up on orcs, elves, and dwarves. To some readers, the Tolkien-derivative novels might as well be lifted from the vaults of ancient mythology because it's seeped into their consciousness. Also, when an artist works on a standard concept, she's participating in a wider phenomenon. It's sort of like a passing of the torch between predecessors who originate or popularize the idea and successors use the idea in new contexts. (I love folk music, so I understand wanting to continue the succession.) Sure, beings like vampires, ghosts, and gods have been around much longer than orcs and are more widespread, but orcs are still part of the canon. And the point about orcs fulfilling a niche previously taken by other baddies (ogres, trolls, goblins, etc) is right on, although I think orcs are slightly more sophisticated to suit the times since they tend to have a society of sorts.
I don't see anything wrong with the desire to participate in the dialog between past and present, but writers need to be respectful of the source. What bothers me is throwing standard races into a novel because that's what makes fantasy. No other reason. It just seems "fantasy." It happens in other genres. It has lasers, so now it's science fiction. Grr!
If you orcs entertain you and you want to tell an entertaining story, orcs will do. Odds are it won't really be your story if you rely on someone else's definition of "orc" instead of doing the work to make it your own.
The idea of orcs entering the tradition is interesting. It gets tricky when things are in transition because it's not clear cut. We'll understand it better in a few decades, and by then we'll be arguing about why Klingons or Dementors–or whatever else takes authors' fancies–are unoriginal or lazy. I look forward to it.